FAA halts El Paso airport flights for 10 days, citing ‘special security’ instructions

The Federal Aviation Administration abruptly grounded all flights in and out of El Paso International Airport in Texas for 10 days starting Wednesday, citing “special security” instructions.

The FAA didn’t immediately say what the security reasons for the sudden halt are. The airport sits next to Biggs Army Airfield and is near the Mexican border, about 12 miles from Juarez, Mexico. The Pentagon referred a question about the nature of the security issue to the FAA.

Flights are halted until late Feb. 20 and the ban applies to a 10-nautical-mile area around the airport.

The airport carried more than 3 million people in the first 11 months of 2025 and is served by Southwest Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, United Airlines and Frontier Airlines.